House of the Dragon Director Appreciates HBO Letting Him Take on GoT as Prequel Wins at Golden Globes

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Head of the house!

House of the Dragon took home the award for best television drama series at the 2023 Golden Globes on Tuesday night, beating out Better Call Saul, The Crown, Ozark and Severance for the coveted trophy.

Director Miguel Sapochnik accepted the honor and brought series stars Emma D'Arcy and Milly Alcock on stage. "Can I have a hand of applause for these amazing actors?" he asked.

Sapochnik, 48, also joked about being underdressed for the occasion, as he didn't have a tie on. "As you can tell, we didn't think we were going to win, so I didn't get ready," he said.

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He went on to express his love for one of House of the Dragon's fellow nominees. "I've got to say, Severance is awesome," Sapochnik said. "I love that show. If I could've made House of the Dragon like Severance, I would've, but it would've been a bit weird."

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The director and producer, who previously worked on Game of Thrones, also thanked HBO "who kind of trusted us with their golden goose," he said. "Hope it was worth it!"

Sapochnik ultimately felt elated that the new series has pleased fans of its predecessor.

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"I noticed when we did the premiere in L.A., what everyone did was they had this thing of relief, rather than being excited and then they got excited," he said. "And it was really heartwarming to know that we actually trimmed the foots of Game of Thrones, because that was one really good show."

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House of the Dragon's award comes after the fantasy drama's debut season on HBO.

Set roughly 200 years before Game of Thrones' eight-season arc, House of the Dragon is another tale about the endless struggle to determine who gets to occupy the Iron Throne. This time, though, the HBO show focused on the squabbles within the house of Targaryen, the dynasty that will ultimately produce Game's Daenerys Targaryen.

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The series starred Paddy Considine, Matt Smith, D'Arcy, Steve Toussaint, Eve Best, Fabien Frankel, Olivia Cooke, Milly Alcock and Emily Carey, and pulled in the largest audience for any new original series in HBO's history with more than 20 million viewers in the U.S. alone.

Ollie Upton / HBO Emma D'Arcy in House of the Dragon

In August, just days after the series' premiere, House of the Dragon was renewed for a second season.

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The 80th annual Golden Globe Awards were broadcasted live on NBC and Peacock.